I have a fantastically easy way to use up lots of ripe tomatoes. After peeling and coring, cut up tomatoes in medium chunks and place in a large, non-reactive dutch oven (avoid tall pans like stock pots). I use an enamel coated dutch oven.
Fill the pot as full as possible with the tomatoes. Place in oven, uncovered at 250 degrees for 48 hrs. Stir tomatoes every 10 hrs or so. The top layer of tomatoes will "roast" which is why stirring is important. This roasted flavor gives the tomatoes a wonderful, earthy flavor that is perfect for soup, salsa, ketchup, barbque sauce or whatever.
Another advantage to this method is it drastically reduces the number of jars needed for canning tomatoes.
I discovered that it is actually possible to freeze tomatoes. All I do is core them, and put them in freezer bags. I don't wash them because that will make them get soggy in the freezer. For cherry tomatoes, yellow plum tomatoes or other small tomatoes, I just freeze them whole in double freezer bags.
By
04/15/2005
It is so hot when the tomatoes are ripe and I don't have air conditioning. I wouldn't be able to roast them at that time. Do you think I could freeze the tomatoes and roast them when the weather cools down? Thank you.